


Out of Feathers, Out of Bones

by ArtemisDiana



Category: Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-12-13
Updated: 2014-08-10
Packaged: 2017-11-21 01:57:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/592164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArtemisDiana/pseuds/ArtemisDiana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Bucky is still the Winter Soldier, he just remembers a little more then everyone thinks he does. Crossposted.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sound Of A Screaming Owl

     He jerked awake at an owl’s soft cry outside his window, holding himself still and silent as he struggled to recall when and where he was. The Howling Commandos had used owl calls to communicate when they were stalking an enemy encampment, and it sounded so close to Bucky’s sign that if it weren’t for the mattress underneath him, he would have believed himself still on the hunt. When there were no following calls or the sound of wings against the glass, Steve raised head slightly to peer out of the window. There was no bird on the sill, not even a loose feather to mark it having been there, and the hair on his neck prickled as a tremor crawled down his spine. He could hear faint scrapings on concrete, shifting slowly upwards, and he listened carefully as the sounds crept up towards the next floor. He carefully slid backwards out of the bed, quietly picking up his shield and staying in the shadows against the wall as he slipped towards the door. He pulled the door open slowly, and when nothing moved in the darkness of the hallway, he stepped through, padding down to Natasha’s rooms. He woke her with the quiet slide of his fingertips on her door frame, and Clint as well, judging by the two sets of footsteps crossing the floor, stopping occasionally to dress and holster weapons. Natasha eyed him with a scowl as she cracked the door open, but something in his face had her softening slightly before pulling Clint after her into the hallway.

     ‘What is it?’

     ‘Someone’s here. Not in the building yet, but high enough to be at my window. I thought… I thought I heard an old friend warning me, but I can’t be sure whether it was a dream or not.’

     ‘It’s not yet three, Stark and Doctor Banner should still be awake in the labs. Jarvis, inform them, quietly, and make Thor aware as well.’

     There was a soft ‘Of course, Agent Romanov,’ and they ghosted down the halls, both agents drawing sidearms. Steve had a moment to wonder where Clint’s bow was before recalling that Tony was supposed to be upgrading it tonight, and his hand clenched on the straps of his shield.

     They’re two floors up when something in Steve’s gut twists, and he stops, flattening against the wall. They’re just about to pass an empty room, but the door is open when it shouldn’t have been. Natasha pulled a mirror from somewhere, Steve wasn’t going to ask, and silently knelt to use it to peer around the door frame. Her fingers flash behind her as she tilts the mirror, and Steve goes cold. Two men, heavily armed, in through a window. Steve was next to useless here, he couldn’t throw without a clear line of sight, and there was no way he could cross the doorway without being seen. They backed down the hallway, Natasha tucking the mirror away as they move, and slipped into an alcove that granted them shelter while still keeping a line of sight on the door.

     ‘Jarvis, alert Stark, and make sure you contact Pepper. If this goes bad - !’

     Steve’s eyes widened as he heard the owl call again, just before two yelps were quickly cut off. Natasha gripped the back of his waistband to keep him from bolting back down the hallway, and he bit his lip, chewing worriedly. He wasn’t asleep this time, but it had sounded exactly like Bucky, which just wasn’t possible.


	2. Chapter 2

     His heart is racing in his chest as he strains his ears for the faintest hint of what's going on in that room, can feel his muscles ratcheting tighter and tighter as the three of them wait in frigid silence, until his stomach leaps into his throat as two bodies are flung carelessly into the hallway. He can tell by the way that they sprawl limply against the floor that they're already dead, and that at least one of them has a snapped neck, head twisted all the way round in an efficiently brutal fashion. A shadow lingers in the doorway, a muted gleam of metal against black and gray, and Steve starts forward towards it, shaking off Natasha's restraining hand as she tries to keep him still. He understands her reticence and caution, but he _needs_ to know if this really is Bucky, if this impossibility isn't just him finally going mad with grief. The padding of his feet against the hallway floor has the shadow stiffening, back pressed against the frame, and Steve holds out shaking hands in supplication.

     'Bucky, it's okay, it's Steve...'

     He firms his jaw, hands still held open as he coughs out the harsh call of a Skua, sharp and painful in the quiet of the hallway, but he sees the shadow shift, sees a tremor run through stiff arms as boots scrape against the tile. Natasha's glaring behind him, his skin burning between his shoulder blades as he takes one more step forward, and then another, as the churring trill of a Nightjar answers him from behind clenched teeth.

     'Buck...'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry this has taken so long to get out and that's it's so short. A while back I was involved in a car accident that involved some brain trauma, so writing doesn't come to me as easily as it once did. I'm doing my best though, and hopefully once I get back into the swing of things, words will come a little smoother.


End file.
